Malawi: Lakeshore Districts At Risk Of Flooding

By Joseph Dumbula Districts around Lake Malawi are at risk of flooding, government had made a fresh warning. This follows a situation in which some main rivers that feed the lake are on the verge of having high water levels. The rivers in Dwangwa, South Rukuru/North Rumphi, Nkhotakota lakeshore, North Rukuru, Songwe/Lufira and Karonga Lakeshore catchments will experience high water levels, according to a statement that the ministry of water and sanitation has issued. The ministry says the said high water levels are expected between 16th and 20th April 2023 and this is due to heavy rainfall in Lakeshore Districts as per weather forecast by Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Service. “The Ministry would, therefore, like to issue a general notice to the public about the possibility of flooding of most rivers in the Lakeshore districts of Karonga, Rumphi, Nkhatabay and Nkhotakota. Therefore, people in the affected areas area being urged to refrain from settling in and crossing the flooded rivers and streams and to be alert when visiting these areas,’’ reads the statement. The public is further advised to pay attention to the continuously available weekly updates on floods from the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to be kept safe from any flood related threats. The caution comes as the country is still counting the cost of a devastating Cyclone Freddy which left thousands destitute. Earlier this month, Parliament passed the Disaster Risk Management Bill which will bring an improved legal framework for preparation and management of disasters. The Bill seeks to repeal the Disaster Preparedness and Relief Act (Cap. 33:05) and replaces it with a new Act in order to align the law with developments in the area of disaster preparedness, risk reduction and response and recovery. According to Minister of Justice Titus Mvalo said the bill has a number of aspects and it starts by establishing a national committee on disaster risk management and then it has also a national technical committee to support the national committee. “The bill also creates committees at local council level for risk disaster management, it also creates committees of disaster risk management at community level. So, it is a very structured arrangement to make sure that when disaster happens there should be coordination between these committees on how to handle disasters,” explained Mvalo. He further noted that the bill addresses issues of preparation for disaster that includes provision in the bill that allow the Minister to declare areas as risk areas and if an area has been declared a risk area the Minister may further have powers to relocate people from those areas to safer places.